Villain: Redux

By: Yay Ninja Bob

Part II: Hate & War

Chapter 18

Buttercup, Take a Bow

"It has been ten weeks since the green Puff has been in my care, and already the road seems clear that this child will one day become the world's most powerful villain. I am very certain that this will happen. I am very sure of it, indeed. I look at this teenager and see it as the child's fortune- destiny- fate. This Puff possesses every quality, talent, skill, and ability needed to succeed as a villain. Most importantly, the child has the desire, want, dream and craving to be a villain. Despite having lost everything- all super powers and abilities robbed and taken- it has only motivated the adolescent more. The resilience within this child is strong, and spirit, indestructible. It is not easy to pick oneself up after being knocked down time and time again. This last loss has stripped the Puff of quite literally everything, and yet, I have watched the thirst for vengeance only grow stronger every day since. Of course, there are only two options when faced with a predicament such as this: Surrender or fight. The child was born to fight.

I, Mojo Jojo, will help the green Puff take back what has been stolen and find a way to restore the power that was so cruelly taken. That has been my promise and vow to the teenager since coming to live with me. Since then I have taken it upon myself to truly raise this child as my own, and once we succeed in returning Joey's power, I will show this young fledgling the ways to becoming a true mastermind, all-powerful and mighty villain.

Yes, Joey I shall call my son, and henceforth I shall only refer to him as such. Jojo Junior- the name has a ring to it, I think. I like to call him Junior, for he possesses the same knack for resilience as I, his villainous father and creator. Thankfully, the green Puff no longer wishes to be associated with his former identity as "Buttercup," and has expressed to me that he would much rather be my son than a daughter. This is a very fortunate and much welcomed, favorable detail, for girls- for reasons that should be both obvious and understandable- drive me to absolute insanity..."

"Hey, Mojo, what you writin' over there?"

Mojo closed the pages to the small, black leather-bound journal as he answered, "I am simply organizing my thoughts."

"Well, I'm all done with those worksheets," Jojo announced as he walked across the room, carrying a small stack of assorted mathematical workbooks with him.

As the teenager reached the short simian's work desk, Mojo turned round in his seat and took the school work from Jojo, "Very good, Son. That would complete your studies for the day then. You are now dismissed so that you may enjoy your one hour of leisure time before dinner."

"Thanks," the green Puff turned to leave downstairs, but stopped at the steps as Mojo continued.

"Do not forget, Junior, tonight is the evening we begin the next phase to our ongoing conquest and mission. Be sure to rest well, Son."

"Right," Jojo showed the villain a small smile. He took another step for the stairs, but stopped again. "So," he paused to ask curiously, "How do you think it's gonna go?"

"Hmph. It may go many ways," Mojo spoke as he scanned the child's schoolwork with his eyes, quickly checking it over for accuracy. "That is to say, concerning the outcome of tonight, there are numerous possibilities. We shall have to wait and see, won't we?" Mojo set down the stack of math sheets and looked at Jojo, "Regardless of the outcome, it shall at least be a good lesson in diplomacy for you, Son- something you must master if you are indeed to one day rule the world!"

"But do you really think anyone's even gonna show-?"

Mojo let out a short laugh, "If they do not, that would be very foolish and unwise! No, the choice to not attend would not be a sensible or logical one to make. I should hope the former members of the Villains' Council still recall and remember how much greater a force we are in numbers and the benefits that come with working as an alliance. Our previous movement only faltered after allowing that accursed demon to corrupt our cause, and that is not a mistake I shall repeat again! This time, Mojo knows better than to trust that vile creature. So long as Him does not become involved, I am confident that this time, the Villains' Council will reach its shared, common goal of destroying the Powerpuff Girls and taking over Townsville! How could any self-respecting villain decline an invitation to be a part of history in the making?"

"Right," the teenager smiled weakly, "Well... see ya in a bit for dinner, Mojo."

The steps from Mojo's laboratory and workspace led into the tower lair's home living area. Jojo's room was at the end of the hallway, across the way from Mojo's. The raven-haired teen usually spent any free time allowed in there, but such breaks were rare. Mojo was very strict with Jojo about staying on task, and the child had to adhere to a firm daily schedule. Every day began at 5 AM with breakfast. 6 AM through 10 AM was devoted to combat training; even with no powers, Mojo said it was no excuse. From 10 AM to 1 PM was homeschool studies, with an hour break at 1 for lunch. School work resumed at 2 PM and did not end for the day until 5 PM. Jojo got an hour break to himself then, before dinner was served promptly at 6. After dinner, Jojo worked alongside Mojo upstairs on various projects that related to their ongoing mission, until Jojo was sent to bed for the night at 10 PM. On weekends, instead of school studies, Jojo spent the day either training physically or assisting Mojo in the lab or workshop, but "slacking" was something the simian did not stand for in the slightest.

It was definitely a lot. Oftentimes the teenager felt overwhelmed by the amount of work Mojo expected from him. In the past, he would groan and complain every time Blossom would force him up by 8 AM, and now he had to be up by 5. The chimp even removed the "snooze" button from the teenager's bedside alarm after deciding that it was being abused too much every morning. Sun up, to sun down, Jojo's training and education to becoming a "true" villain never quit. As hard as it was though, the green Puff was motivated to do whatever it might take. So long as it meant that he would one day become powerful enough to reach his new goal in life: Destroy the Powerpuff Girls.

As the green Puff reclined against the twin-sized bed mattress in his room, he reached for a comic book on his bedside nightstand. Turning the page, he felt a sharp sting to his index finger as the paper sliced his scarred skin. "Fuck!" he cursed as he pulled back his hand, a single bead of blood dropping onto the page. He sucked on the wound to get the bleeding to stop as he angrily tossed aside the comic book. Any reminder to his now human-like state always ignited a rage within him and he instinctively punched the wall alongside his bed with his other fist, leaving behind a hole.

"Grargh! FUCK!" Jojo cursed again as he shook out the pain in his hand.

"Junior?" Mojo called out from upstairs, "That was not the sound of yet another hole being punched through your bedroom wall again, was it?"

Jojo grumbled low, "Ugh, how does he know every time-?"

"Junior?" Mojo repeated, expecting an answer.

"I got it!" Jojo called back, standing from his bed and reaching underneath it for the patch kit he always kept handy, "I'm fixing it already, Jeez!"

As the teenager sat upon his bed once more and covered the newest crater with a smudge of white spackle paste, he tried to take deep breaths to calm his rage. He was angry, and that was why he was snapping at Mojo, but it wasn't Mojo he was angry at. The source of his fury was always from the frustration of being without super powers. He was also likely a little more tense that day since later that evening Mojo and he would finally be making their first step towards getting his power back.

For two months, he and the mutant chimp worked tirelessly on their scheme together, and it was a plan that would require help from others. Mojo sent the invites to that night's first Villains' Council meeting more than a week ago, and they had yet to hear back from any of the other villains. As much as Mojo talked about how stupid they would all be to not want to help, Jojo knew: One, there were not many villains left in Townsville. Also, two, Princess, who their plan depended upon arguably the most, was definitely not a fan of Mojo's. And of course there was that time she announced very clearly on national news that she wanted Joey dead.

Once the quick patchwork was done, Jojo reclined on his bed once more and let out an exhausted sigh. His emerald eyes drifted over to his bedroom closet where a green faced mask hung upon the door. He stood again and walked over to it. Taking the mask in his scarred hands, he looked into its empty eye sockets as he muttered low, "It's gonna be hella disappointing tonight if Mojo doesn't even get the chance to pitch his idea to nobody after all the work we've done..."

The green Puff carried his mask with him as he peered out from his bedroom door and down the hallway. He could hear the sound of clanking pans as Mojo prepared dinner for the evening. He glanced over his shoulder at his bedside alarm clock for the time, before looking down at his mask again. "Well, guess we got a little time to at least try and make a difference, right?"


Every phone call as of late was the same, and the heartbreak wasn't getting any easier. Sophia had never been a fussy child for as long as Ace had raised her. In Ace's opinion, she had always been a tough little cookie, so the eight-year-old's sniffles and crying had to be real. Every day she called Ace to tell him how much she hated life up north. Living with her abuela, the kids at school apparently teasing her, her dad and uncles not being able to leave the house ever- all of it was eating the kid up, and there was nothing Ace could do about it.

"Please, Nino, I wanna come home! I miss you! I miss you so much, and I miss Uncle Ty and Tia Betty and all my friends at school and-and-"

As the girl broke down into sobs, the pain in Ace's chest wrenched again. "Soph, I know. I know. I'm trying my best to come up there to be with you soon. Things are still just a little complicated down here, and-"

"Nino, I don't wanna be here! Why can't Daddy and I just come back to Townsville?"

"You can't, mija. You just can't, OK?" Ace sighed deeply, before continuing as soft and sweet as he could, "Soph, I promise you that things will get better. You just have to hang in there, a'ight? You're a tough kid, Soph. I know it's hard, but you gotta be strong and you gotta be patient. Put your pops back on the phone for me, OK?"

"OK," the little girl sniffled on the other end, "I love you, Nino."

"I love you too, Soph."

As Ace waited for Arturo to come on the line, he took a long, deep drag from his marijuanna joint.

"Hey, Ace," Arturo's voice didn't sound much happier than Sophia's.

"Hey, Arturo," Ace sighed as he exhaled, "How you holdin' up, Man?"

"'S a'ight," Arturo sighed in return, "Sophia's just... having a hard time at her new school, sabes? Fitting in y todo. She misses you a lot, tambien."

"Yo, I'm sorry, Arturo-"

"Not your fault, Ace," Arturo interrupted. He sighed again, "You did a good job raising her for me, Cousin. She's got a big heart, and she's just the most amazing kid- I got you to thank for that. I'm trying my best to do all I can for her, pero es not easy. ¿Qué puedo decir? I ain't you, and... she needs you, Man. She loves her Nino more than anyone and I can't blame her. So... just try and get up here as fast as you can, Ace. Please."

"If I could leave tonight, Arturo, I would," Ace dropped his joint into the ashtray on the coffee table as he stood and faced the window behind him. He pulled back the blinds cautiously as he peered outside, "They still got a patrol car rollin' through here every hour on the hour, so I know they're watchin' me again. Can't figure out why after they told me the investigation was dropped-"

"You think they know somethin' new?"

"No idea, Man," Ace sighed as he shut the blinds again, "All I know is it's too risky for me to be coming by to see you all right now."

"I understand," Arturo said sadly, "I just hope they quit soon."

"Me too."

"Look, Ace, I gotta go. I can hear Sophia still crying in her room, so I'm gonna go be with her and see what I can do."

"'Course. Give her a hug for me, a'ight?"

"I will. Talk to you later, Ace."

"Bye," Ace hung up his cell with a long, heavy sigh.

"Everything alright, Dude?"

The sudden voice from behind caused Ace to jump. He turned around and jumped again at the sight of a masked green face standing in his living room.

"Yo, it's me," the green Puff removed the mask and smiled weakly, "Didn't mean to scare ya, Dude. Sorry."

"Jesus, Kid," Ace clutched his chest, "How'd ya get in here?"

"Kitchen window. I was tryin' to practice my stealth skills. Did ya hear me come in?"

"Nah," Ace sighed as he shook his head a little, "I didn't."

"Cool."

Ace continued to shake his head, "Kid, what're ya doin' here? You know you ain't supposed to be coming around here no more. Your sisters made that pretty damn clear-"

"Man, I don't listen to them no more-"

"Well, that don't matter. Listen, Cuppo-"

"Joey."

"What?"

"It's Joey now. Or Jojo."

"Sorry. Joey," Ace started again, "I can't have you around here no more. What if someone sees ya and it gets back to your sisters?"

"I was careful! No one saw me! Trust me, I'm like the master at hiding now."

"Well, there's a cruiser rollin' through the neighborhood about twenty times a day. So what's goin' on with that? Is there somethin' I should be worried about, Kid?"

"Dude, I have no idea," the green Puff shrugged, "I haven't been around any investigation stuff for months now. I've been staying with Mojo."

"What?" Ace lowered his glasses a little to get a clearer look at the kid. "Yo, I saw that bank robbery a while back. Kid, what have you got yourself into now?"

"He's helping me become a real villain, Dude," the teenager wore a proud grin, "That's why I'm here. You comin' by tonight or what?"

Ace shook his head, "Man, Kid, I don't believe this-"

"What?" the green Puff blinked back. "Didn't you get the invite last week? For the Villains' Council meeting?"

"Yeah I got it."

"So?"

"So, I burned it."

"Aw, what?" Jojo frowned, "For real? Why?"

"I ain't interested in being a part of no Villains' Council-"

"Aw, Man, but don't you wanna at least hear about what Mojo's got planned?"

"Nah, I don't."

Jojo frowned again, "Dude. I think you should go. Even if you don't consider yourself a villain no more, it's not gonna stop this city from seeing you as one anyway-"

"Look, Joey, I don't see how getting caught up in some villainous scheme is going to solve anything-"

"Just go and listen to what he's got to say, Ace! Come on, please? I've been helping him all this time with getting this whole thing set up, and I'm kinda worried no one's gonna show, so even if you just came around, it'd mean a lot, Man! Mojo don't even want nothin' from you. He just wants to offer some support-"

"Kid, there ain't nothin' in life that comes for free. That, I know."

"Nah, for real. He's got roles for the others, but you and the gang, well, I told him about how you all helped me and kept my secret this whole time, so he says we owe you one for that. Your admission is paid for, Dude. You're good. I mean if you want a job in the plan, we can find one for ya still, but-"

"Again, Kid," Ace interrupted, "I'm not going." The green man let out another long sigh, "I appreciate it, OK? But if I'm really being watched right now, the last place I wanna get caught up at is in a room full of Townsville's Most Wanted. Ya get it?"

Jojo frowned. "Yeah... I get it..."

"A'ight. So again, I'm sorry, Kid."

"It's OK," Jojo sighed. "Nah, I do get it. You don't have to go, Man. I mean... no matter what, I'm gonna have your back, Dude. You always had mine, after all."

Ace couldn't help but smirk. "You sure you doin' OK? I mean... living with that monkey is really workin' out for ya?"

"Yeah," Jojo smiled. "It is."

Ace studied the kid for a moment, before giving a shrug, "A'ight. If ya say so." He smirked a little, "Ya look good, Kid."

"Thanks."

"Good luck, Man, and be careful, a'ight?"

"See ya, Ace."


It wasn't too long a hike from Ace's place to Jojo's next destination. East Downtown sat just beneath the Hills where Morbucks Manor was, which was convenient, except that it was an uphill climb the entire way. Being out in public, the teen always wore baggy, oversized, long sleeved clothing and a baseball cap to stay hidden. By the time Jojo had reached the top, he was drenched with sweat and exhausted. Jojo was just thankful that it was already early evening during the strenuous climb. If not, he may have very well collapsed from heat exhaustion.

As Jojo reached the tall golden gates of Morbucks Manor, he swapped the baseball cap on top of his head out for his green faced mask. He rang the gate's buzzer and waited.

After a minute, Alfred's voice answered through the intercom speaker, "Yes, may I help you?"

"Hey, uh... it's Joey. I was, uh, wondering if I could talk to Princess?"

There was a long pause, "One moment..."

As Jojo waited for an answer, he was starting to feel like the journey up the hills might have been for nothing. He knew Princess was upset with him, and it was definitely a possibility that the heiress wouldn't want to see him at all. Without superpowers, the seventy-five foot tall barrier that surrounded the estate would be pretty near impossible to get past on his own. Just as Jojo was about to try the buzzer again, the golden gates began to part open. "Woah," Jojo said, surprised, "They're actually letting me inside..."

The masked teenager stepped through the open gates and started down the path towards the main home. In the distance, he saw Alfred step out to hold the door open first. Sure enough, Princess stepped out next. As Jojo's green eyes fell on the short redhead, he couldn't help but smile a little from behind his mask. He raised his scarred right hand to give the girl a wave from the distance, but Princess did not wave back. Her brown eyes narrowed in return and as Jojo still waved at her, she reached for a golden pistol at her side and took aim.

"Oh shi-" Before Jojo could drop his hand, he felt something rip through the edge to the sleeve of his jacket as Princess began to fire, "OH SHIT!"

As the raven-haired teen retreated fast for the gates once more, Princess stepped out onto the steps of the mansion, keeping her weapon raised and fixed on Joey. "YEAH YOU BETTER RUN, YOU LYING BASTARD!" As she yelled out and fired, her eyes were closed. To her, it didn't matter if she actually hit Joey or not. Without her blasters, she didn't think she could do any damage. It was simply about sending a message. She emptied her weapon on the masked teenager, with quick rapid fire- BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!

Jojo tried his best to dodge the flying bullets, but before he could reach the gates, there was a sudden sharp pain that pierced his left shoulder. "AH FUCK!" the teenager cursed, tripping and falling to the ground in pain, "FUCK-FUCK-FUCK!"

Alfred stood beside Princess on the steps of the manor and winced, "Princess, I think you may have struck them-"

"Relax, the stupid jerk's bulletproof-" she stopped as she watched Joey fall onto the floor, cursing in pain. As they clutched their left shoulder, writhing about on the ground, blood began to soak through their jacket. Princess gasped, her brown eyes softening suddenly, "Joey!"

Alfred and Princess rushed over to the bleeding masked teenager who groaned miserably. "You fucking shot me!"

"You're supposed to be bulletproof!" Princess snapped back.

"My fucking powers are gone!"

"What?! How was I supposed to know that?!"

"You fucking psycho! I just wanted to talk to ya!"

"Oh, NOW you wanna talk-?" Princess stopped as Alfred knelt down beside Joey, helping the teen sit up and remove their jacket. Her brown eyes fell first on the deep crimson red that stained the short sleeved green t-shirt, and next on the darkened scars that covered most of Joey's forearms. This was the first time Princess had seen just how heavily the teenager was scarred on both arms. She had only seen their hands before then. She always had the impression that there was more underneath, but seeing it then for herself was still a shock.

Alfred rolled up Joey's t-shirt sleeve to get a good look at the wound, "You're lucky," he said, "The bullet just grazed you. You'll need a few stitches, but," Alfred helped the teen onto their feet, "I can help take care of that for you inside."

"Lemme guess," Joey groaned, "You've had a lot of practice thanks to Lil' Miss Gun Slinger over here-" Joey stopped, noticing then how Princess had stopped talking. Looking at her then, it was easy to see that her brown eyes were locked on the scars on Joey's arms, as she stared and said nothing. The green Puff wasn't sure what she was thinking, but seeing the fiery redhead so quiet was unusual.

Alfred led Joey into the manor and brought them into an oversized guest bathroom. Princess followed them inside, but kept quiet as Joey sat upon the countertop while Alfred retrieved a first aid kit from the cabinet and quickly got to work.

"This should heal up just fine, although it may leave a small scar," Alfred said as he began to clean up the inch-sized gash on Joey's left shoulder.

"What's one more, huh?" Joey laughed a little before glancing towards Princess. She was still quiet as she stared back from where she stood at the doorway.

It took Alfred several minutes to stitch up the wound, and all the while the silence was making Joey feel more and more self-conscious, feeling the heiress' eyes on the scars the entire time.

Finally Joey spoke up, "Pretty gross, right?"

Princess blinked back.

"You should see the one on my face," Joey laughed a little. "Told ya, I'm ugly-"

"I don't think they're ugly," Princess interrupted, her voice soft, but stern, "And I don't think they're gross."

Joey was taken back by the response.

Princess walked over to where Joey sat and watched quietly for a moment as Alfred sewed up the spot on Joey's shoulder. She frowned, "I could've killed you right now-"

"Well, yeah."

"You said you lost your powers, how did that even happen?"

"The Powerpuff Girls," Joey answered with a grumble, clenching their scarred fists. "They took them from me."

"What?" Princess blinked back. She shook her head in disbelief, "Those bitches!"

"I know, right?! Trust me, it was super fucked up!"

Princess clenched her own fists, "They take MY blasters and YOUR powers! Ugh! Who the hell do they think they are?! Why the fuck do they get to make all the rules?! Ugh! I can't fucking stand them!"

"Me either."

"All done," Alfred announced as he stepped away from Joey.

"Thanks," Joey said to Alfred and hopped off from the counter. "So," they faced Princess, "Can we... talk?"

Princess paused for a moment, before answering with a nod, "Fine. This way then."

Joey followed Princess out and down the corridor to an open living area. The two teenagers sat down on either end of a purple cushioned loveseat, each making sure that there was a considerable distance left between them.

"Alfred, tea, please," Princess said as she smoothed out her pleated purple skirt with her hands as she sat.

"Right away, Miss," Alfred replied as he quickly left.

Joey spoke up from behind their mask, "Actually, I don't really have a lot of time for tea and everything. I gotta get back in time for dinner before my dad gets pissed. I just wanted to know if you were plannin' on coming to the Villains' Council meeting tonight-"

"Your dad?" Princess narrowed her eyes as she gritted her teeth, "You mean Monkey Man?"

Joey gulped, "Y-yeah-"

Princess continued to glare, "And why did you never tell me that that mutant freak was your father?!"

"Look, Princess, I never meant to lie about that! It's complicated!"

"What are you like part ape yourself too or something?!"

"What? No! I told ya before, I'm not exactly human! I was made in a lab! And, well, Mojo was the one who- he well- you see I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for him so, yeah, that sorta makes him my dad, you see? Ugh, I told ya, it's confusing! Anyways, I really didn't start to think of him as a dad until recently! Like after all the stuff that happened between me and you!"

"Breaking into the Villains Ward was MY idea, Joey! MINE! And you and your DAD took all the credit!"

"I know! Look, I'm sorry! But yeah, you're right, OK? If it weren't for your plan, well, I woulda never busted Mojo out. I mean, in a way, I really owe you for bringing the two of us together-"

"Wow," Princess gave a short laugh, "Glad I could help." She crossed her arms and pouted.

Joey sighed. "Princess... look, I'm sorry, alright? You probably think that I betrayed you by teaming up with him instead of you, but... well... Kinda like how you needed Mojo so you could get your blaster guns back... well, I need Mojo now so I can get my power back. Just 'cause I'm working with him, I don't see why me and you, you know... can't also work together or somethin'..."

Princess looked at Joey and raised an eyebrow. She thought for a moment before she turned up her nose stubbornly, "No thank you. I don't want to work with some masked freak Monkey Boy!"

"What if I told you I already been workin' on a plan? Huh? Something that involves just me and you."

Princess let out another laugh, "Oh really? Why don't you just get your chimp father to help you-"

"I want you to help me with this," Joey insisted. "It's... well, it's kinda inspired by you and everything..."

Princess looked at Joey, her expression softening slightly. "...Inspired by me?"

Joey nodded. "I got an idea, and well, if it works it's definitely something that will humiliate the Powerpuff Girls so bad their heads might explode. On top of that, the torture their gonna face, well, I'm sure it'll be bad enough to last the rest of their miserable lives. And if we pull everything off just right, you and I are gonna be able to destroy at least one of those Puffs... forever."

Princess stared back at Joey with her brown eyes twinkling, her breath stolen in that moment. She had never heard anything so romantic in her life.

Joey stood from their seat, "Look, I gotta get going. But... my plan can't happen until I get my powers back, and Mojo and I are working on it, but it all depends on if you show up to tonight's meeting and agree to help. Mojo's actually got a pretty good reward planned for you if you decide to form an alliance, you know?"

"Hmph," Princess pouted slightly, "Try me."

"A new set of blasters and a Powerpuff-Proof suit."

The heiress blinked back, "...Powerpuff-Proof?"

Joey nodded, "Yeah. It's like totally unbreakable no matter what. The Powerpuff Girls can hit you, zap you- whatever- and it won't do no damage. His design has even got little built-in hover things at your feet so you can like, fly and zip around. You'll be pretty much just like a Powerpuff. Trust me, he went all out 'cause even though he ain't your biggest fan, he knows we need your help on this." Joey paused, "So... are you gonna come tonight?"

Princess looked at Joey, pausing for a moment. "I'll consider it."

Joey smirked from behind their mask, "OK. Well, I hope you do, 'cause like I said, we really need your help, Princess." They turned to leave, "Plus... it'd be nice to see you, of course."

Princess turned her head so that Joey could not see the blush that swept her face then. "Goodbye, Joey."

"Bye, Princess."


Under the moonlight, the Professor walked for miles along the highway to get from City Hall to home. For the last two months, it was about a seven mile journey to and from work every day on foot. Every day he took a slightly different route, in hopes that he may somehow cross paths with his missing child. Of course, he could easily drive instead, but he always chose to walk. It was easier to search for signs of Buttercup this way. He hadn't given up hope that she was somewhere out there, and he wanted nothing more than to bring her back home.

Professor Utonium was not usually one to take his work outside of his home's basement laboratory, however his current work on the Villains Ward's Super Advanced Cell renovations was extensive enough to warrant a bigger workspace. Mayor Bellum assisted him with this, providing a workroom within City Hall itself. It was a convenient location since Townsville Prison was not far from the municipal building.

Conveniency wasn't everything though. He found it incredibly difficult to be home as of late. The house felt empty. Ever since the green Puff disappeared without a trace, a heavy, hallowed silence plagued the Utonium Home. Blossom and Bubbles had always been more extroverted types and often out and about with friends. Buttercup had always been his one child to stay home, and more often than not it was just the two of them. Even though the teenager was usually locked away in her upstairs bedroom while the Professor was two floors down locked away in his basement laboratory, now that she was gone her presence was certainly missed, and her absence deeply felt.

As the Professor stepped into the darkened living room of the house, he did not bother to turn on the lights. It had been a long day at work, and another long walk home, and it was already well past eleven at night. He knew at that hour, both Blossom and Bubbles had gone to bed already. Stepping into the home's kitchen, he found a plate of food, wrapped and waiting for him on the dining table. A small smile crossed his face, knowing the loving gesture was the work of Bubbles. He took the plate of dinner and popped it into the microwave to reheat, before starting for the home's staircase.

The first door at the top of the stairs was open, just like it had been for the last two and half months. Inside the green bedroom, he found his blonde haired daughter fast asleep in her sibling's bed. Since Buttercup's absence, the room had practically become hers. The blue Puff slept there every night, hoping for the green Puff's return. The Professor approached the sleeping girl and planted a loving kiss on top of her head. He tucked her in gently with the green comforter, before leaving for the next room to check on his other daughter.

Blossom appeared to be fast asleep, too. She was buried deep underneath her pink quilted blanket, and just the very top of her red hair peeked out from the carnation colored bed sheets. The Professor walked quietly over to her bedside and planted a kiss on top of her head. He petted her head lovingly for a moment, before turning to leave.

As the Professor shut the door to the pink room behind him, Blossom opened her eyes from underneath her blankets. She waited until the sound of the Professor's footsteps retreated back down the hallway before she sat up again. She reached for her laptop that sat upon her nightstand and switched it back on, looking for something else to occupy her restless mind.

Sleep did not come easy for her since Buttercup went missing. How could she ever sleep knowing that her sibling was gone? The hopelessness she felt left her spirit numb, and there was no rest for her troubled mind. Even when she was exhausted to the point of having to sleep, her dreams were only nightmares about that dreadful night. She could still hear the green Puff's heart wrenching pleas for mercy, and every time she shut her eyes she saw that look of betrayal, fear and pain in her sibling's emerald eyes staring back at her. Every minute, of every day since, she felt regret. When they discovered Buttercup's CD collection missing along with her backpack and some clothes, it was obvious to the Utoniums that the teenager had run away. Blossom did not blame Buttercup for this, but she wished more than anything that the green Puff would someday soon change her mind and come back home.

Not anywhere near a state of sleep, Blossom decided to get a head start on her next homeschool assignment. This school year was supposed to be the triplet's final senior year of high school. However, when Buttercup went missing a week before the semester was set to start, neither Bubbles nor Blossom felt up to attending school regularly. So they tutored from home instead for the time being.

As Blossom opened a word document to get started on her assigned book report, she heard a light tapping coming from her bedroom window. The pink Puff set aside her laptop and rose from her bed. "Robin?" she whispered as she opened the pane.

"Hey you," Robin whispered in return as Blossom helped her through the circular window. As soon as she stood upon the pink plush carpet of the room, the brunette wasted no time embracing her girlfriend in a kiss.

Blossom pulled away, "Robin, you shouldn't be here-"

Robin frowned as her girlfriend abruptly ended what she wanted to be a tender moment. "Well, if I didn't come by like this, I might never get to see you anymore," Robin watched as the redhead returned to her bed, reclining against her pillow with her laptop on her lap again. "Blossom, I'm... worried about you..."

Blossom said nothing and kept her gaze fixed on her laptop.

Robin sighed as she walked over to the redhead's bed and sat down beside her. Ever since Buttercup left, Blossom had been this way. Of course, Robin was worried about the green Puff's safety too, but it was difficult to keep sympathy for Buttercup after the stunt she tried to pull when she last saw her. Sure, she heard later from the Utoniums that her behavior had been strange and manic before running away, but Robin still felt violated and hurt by her friend. Frankly, if Buttercup were still around, she wondered if she'd even be able to get past what had happened enough to even still consider her a friend then. Of course, no one else knew about the incident. It seemed inappropriate to share while the whole family was grieving her absence. It didn't stop Robin from feeling the way she did though.

"Come on," Robin whispered softly as she reached for Blossom's laptop to lower the screen, "Lay down with me and get some rest-"

Blossom grabbed the screen before Robin could shut it, firmly keeping it open. "No thank you."

Robin sighed again. "Do you just want me to leave then?"

"I told you," Blossom spoke as she typed simultaneously on her laptop, "You shouldn't be here."

Robin felt a rush of emotions and she had to stand then and take a step away from the pink Puff. She wiped away a tear before it could fall as she faced Blossom again, "Blossom, I'm really trying here, OK? I know you're upset about Buttercup, but-"

"But what?" Blossom looked up from her screen at last, "I should just be able to forget about it and fuck you whenever you ask for it?"

Robin blinked back, shocked by Blossom's sudden cruel tone. "That's not at all what I came here for-"

"Then what are you here for?"

"To be with you, Blossom!" Robin shook her head in disbelief. Blossom's behavior had her so upset, it was hard to keep from yelling, but she whispered harshly and with desperation, "I just want to be with you! Lay with you and cuddle and spend time together and do all the things we used to do! It's like you don't ever want me around anymore ever since Buttercup left! I don't understand it! I'm trying to, but I don't! You're just so distant and trapped in your own head twenty-four seven and detached and cold-"

"Are you really trying to make all of this about you right now, Robin?"

"What? No! Of course not-"

"That's what it sounds like."

"That's not what I'm trying to say at all, Blossom-"

"My sister is gone!" Blossom snapped as she slammed her laptop shut, rising from her bed next. "Buttercup is gone and I don't know where she is and it's been months! Of course my mind is somewhere else all the time! How can it not be?! How do you not understand that?! I know you're an only child, so maybe you can't understand the bond that me and my sisters have but I'm not going to be made to feel guilty about what I'm going through right now! For God's sake, I already feel enough guilt as it is! Everyday the guilt eats away at me! I don't need anymore from you!"

Robin cried as she stared back at Blossom, unsure of what to say next.

As Blossom looked at Robin, she watched the brunette turn away from her in the dark. Robin buried her face in her hands and Blossom could hear her muffled sobs as the girl's body shook. Her pink eyes softened as she felt sorry for her. Of course, she didn't mean to snap at Robin. The racing thoughts that plagued her mind had gotten so loud, it was more difficult as of late to recognize when she was actually speaking them- and they were always negative. At least as of late they were.

Blossom lowered herself back onto her bed and buried her face in her own hands as she began to cry too.

Hearing the pink Puff's sniffles in the dark, Robin slowly turned around again. She wiped her own tears and slowly walked over to Blossom and sat down beside her.

Blossom looked at Robin and wiped away her tears before she reached for her hand and took it. "Do you remember the night we shared our first kiss?"

Robin nodded, "Of course," the teal eyed girl smiled weakly, "It was Halloween night. You confessed to me that you were madly in love and couldn't stand it anymore-"

Blossom let out a laugh, as she wiped away another falling tear, "I couldn't. I... I was so obsessed with you for so long. All I ever wanted was to have you as my girlfriend. And when I started to tell you about how I felt and started rambling on like a total idiot, and just wouldn't stop going on and on about how amazing and beautiful I thought you were and how long I've secretly wanted to be with you- God, it was the best feeling in my life to feel your lips on mine, shutting my stupid mouth finally. That kiss... it was... so good. It just felt so good. Because in just one amazing instant, it was like all my dreams had finally come true. I had finally gotten what I wanted. I finally had you..."

"I felt the same way, Blossom..." Robin squeezed her girlfriend's hand, "I still do..."

The pink Puff squeezed Robin's hand in return as her eyes began to flood with tears again. "It was the happiest night of my life. It truly was..." Blossom's voice trailed off as she paused for a moment to wipe her tears again, "But... at the same time that we kissed and shared that unforgettable moment together... Buttercup was just in the next room."

Robin's timid smile faded into a frown as she watched Blossom pull away and stand from the bed.

"Buttercup had always liked you just as much as I did and for just about as long as I did. For the longest time, I thought you two were the better match, because well," Blossom laughed again through her tears, "I'm just a dork!" She shook her head, "I wanted that kiss from you. I dreamt about that moment for years before it happened. But... I betrayed my sister. I got with you, and I kept it hidden, because I thought if she just didn't know that somehow that would make it OK, but it wasn't. I thought, hopefully she'll find some other girl and when that happens, then we can all be happy, but-" Blossom stopped as she exhaled deeply, as a visible puff of light frost escaped her lips. "I was wrong, Robin. I can't tell you how wrong I was. Not just with this, but with so much! I feel so guilty for everything that I did and failed to do and for breaking so many promises that I had made her. I promised I'd forget about you, and I didn't. I promised that I'd make sure that she'd never have to take Antidote X, but it still happened. I told myself that it was the right thing to do, but I was wrong. I was so wrong..."

"Blossom... it's gonna be OK..."

"No," Blossom shook her head as she wrapped her arms around herself, taking another icy chilled breath. "It's not OK, Robin." She turned away from the brunette as she squeezed herself tighter, "I can't be with you anymore, Robin. I can't keep doing this. It has to stop. I have to stop it. It's... over."

Robin blinked back as she stood from Blossom's bed. "Blossom, you can't mean that-"

"I mean it," Blossom turned back around and faced the tearful brunette. "I'm sorry."

Heartbroken, Robin couldn't stand to be there any longer. She ran from the room, bursting into tears once more. Blossom floated over to her open bedroom door and watched as the girl left down the hall, and down the stairs, never looking back. She felt the tears that stuck to her cheeks begin to turn to ice as her body shivered terribly. She reached for a heated throw blanket that was draped over her desk chair and wrapped herself up with it, and shut the door.


The standalone warehouse was a windowless box that sat just on the outskirts of Downtown Townsville. The abandoned former paint factory had been something that was empty even before Mojo had been locked away. Once he realized the decaying old building was still standing and still empty, he knew he could find a new purpose for it. Mojo and Junior spent the last two and half months cleaning up and rebuilding the warehouse back up to fair enough conditions. It still wasn't anything pretty, but for then, all it needed to be was a safe, secure place to meet. Even though the pair had worked hard on improving the warehouse's conditions, as Princess and Sedusa stepped out from the back of the limo, and onto the gravel parking lot of the dingy, dilapidated building, they were not impressed.

"Why did we bother to show up to this thing again?" Sedusa asked as she, Princess and Alfred approached the warehouse together.

Princess struggled to walk upon the uneven gravel in her heeled boots. "Because apparently the monkey's got gifts for us, so let's just see what he wants."

"Mmm-hmm," Sedusa remarked as she glanced down at the girl, "You look very nice tonight, Princess. Tell me, do you have a date planned after the meeting?"

Princess narrowed her eyes, but she said nothing as they reached the warehouse door.

Before they could knock, the factory door slid open, and they were greeted by a green faced mask, "You made it!" The teenager held the door open for the group as they passed through, "Come on in."

The large warehouse was mostly empty, and dimly lit. While there was a light that hung over the long conference table that stood at the center of the building, much of the light that lit the path to the meeting area came from a large collection of candles that were placed all along the floor.

As Sedusa walked through the doorway last, she noticed something sprinkled across the ground, "Is that... salt?" She glanced about the building next and laughed as she noticed the abundance of candles and caught the scent of sage in the air. "Salt, burning candles and sage," she shook her head as she looked at Mojo who stood waiting at the head of the meeting table, standing upon a chair. "If you ask me, it looks like you're trying to keep someone out."

"That would be accurate," Mojo nodded at the wild-haired villainess as she took a seat at the table, "Hello again, Sedusa."

"Hello, Mojo," she smiled with her fangs, "So did you douse this place in holy water, too?"

Mojo did not answer, but instead looked to Princess next who took the seat across from the seductress, her butler sitting beside her. "Hello again, Princess," he forced a smile.

"Hello, Mojo," Princess forced one in return.

Once everyone was seated, Jojo joined Mojo at the head of the table, standing just a step behind him.

Mojo cleared his throat before he began, "Thank you all for coming tonight."

Sedusa glanced about the room as she let out a short laugh, "All? As in all two of us?"

"Alas," Mojo sighed, "Us Villains are a dwindling, dying and diminishing population and people. Sadly not many of us remain, and our kind grows scarcer over time. With that said, I would like to begin tonight's meeting with a moment of silence for our fallen brethren. Namely, Fuzzy Lumpkins, who was so savagely and viciously ripped apart this summer by wild coyotes. So, if everyone will bow their heads..."

"Ripped apart by coyotes?" Sedusa repeated.

"Jeesh, is that what happend-?" Princess added.

"A moment of silence requires silence, please," Mojo interrupted, keeping his head bowed and his eyes shut.

The room went quiet as everyone complied with Mojo's request.

"Thank you," Mojo cleared his throat again. "It is a pity and a shame that we must begin our gathering on such a tragic, somber note. At the same time, acknowledging such an unfortunate event is something we must do. We must remind ourselves that we villains walk through this city with a target on our backs. There is much out there which seeks to put an end to us. Indeed, they succeeded for a short time in caging and imprisoning many of us. Six years could have lasted even longer, but thanks to my son Jojo-"

Mojo was interrupted briefly by Jojo behind him who cleared his throat and then tilted his head slightly in the direction of Princess.

"Thanks to my son Jojo and, of course, Princess," Mojo said again, forcing a weak smile as he acknowledged the heiress, "We are free. However, that freedom is now threatened more than ever by an oppression so terrible, so atrocious, so barbaric- it must be stopped! Professor Utonium has designed a new type of prison cell that is to be installed in the Villains Ward within Townsville Prison that is confirmed to be completely and totally indestructible. Impenetrable and impossible to break into, even for my superpowered offspring. Of course," Mojo paused as he looked between Princess and Sedusa, "You two are likely already familiar with this proposed technology for it is the Morbucks family who is funding this affront to justice. Princess, heiress of the estate, and if who I've seen on the news is truly you, you, Sedusa are currently living under disguise as a member of the family as well."

"Guilty," Sedusa replied with a smile.

"Hmph," Mojo continued, "Well, while it is regrettable and highly disappointing that two villains would seek to sell their own kind out and consequently put all villains at risk and in danger- at least those of us unable to buy our ways out- I am willing to forgive and overlook such an exploit, for at least it leaves us with one advantage. The benefit I speak of would be the upper hand we hold by having our own so closely related and associated with the very construction of this project. It is the Morbucks whose construction company is building and assembling these very cells. And here, we have two Morbucks, one official and one artificial, who I hope will be willing to assist with my very carefully, well thought out, brilliantly imagined plan of sabotage." Mojo paused to give Jojo a nod behind him, "Junior, if you will."

"Got it," Jojo answered with a nod.

The masked teenager approached a draped curtain that hung behind Mojo and pulled it away, revealing a ten foot by ten foot glass box.

"Now how did you manage to get your monkey paws on one of Utonium's torture chambers, Mojo?" Sedusa asked as she stood from her seat to get a better look of the oversized clear container.

"Aha! Yes, come and take a closer look for yourselves!" Mojo rubbed his gloved hands together as he watched Princess and Sedusa inspect his invention closely, "While it may look just like the real deal, this is not Professor Utonium's design, but my own. It is I, Mojo Jojo, who carefully crafted this faux replica of Professor Utonium's Super Advanced Cell. It possesses all the same features as Utonium's except on mine I have altered the material used so that it is unbreakable and impenetrable to most, but not quite all. Sturdy and hardy enough to pass most every test of strength against it- it will be difficult to detect any difference or disruption to the real thing! But, if my version of the Super Advanced Cell is installed in place of Utonium's, I can assure you that an indefinite imprisonment is not something we villains will have to fear! For my counterfeit cells are in fact destructible and can be broken by the very force that freed us all from the Villains Ward before, and that is my son, Jojo! He will be able to break any imprisoned villain free from these cages, and he will do so for all of you if you are unfortunate enough to find yourselves trapped and held captive! Of course, that will only happen if you both agree to an alliance with us and assist us with our endeavors."

Mojo climbed down from his chair and met Princess beside the crystal glass cell. "Princess, if you could locate your father's records on the matter of the Villains Ward and its ongoing construction efforts, I would require of you to find a route in which we may be able to swap my materials with that of Utonium's. Is this something you might be capable of?"

"Figure out how to switch your fake glass with the real stuff?"

"Yes."

Being in charge of all of the Morbucks construction projects, of course she could. "I suppose it may be something I can try to look into," she answered indifferently, "But what do I get out of it?"

"If you can get me Utonium's enhanced crystal glass, I have many ideas on how to repurpose such material. This would include a body of armor, so powerful, so durable that even a Powerpuff cannot leave so much as a scratch behind upon it. I will make you a custom Powerpuff-Proof Suit that you may use yourself in your own villainous pursuits. I also heard you were robbed of your blaster rayguns again, and I will replace those for you as well. How does that sound?"

Princess thought it sounded like more than a fair trade. What did it matter to her what the new Villains Ward was made of? Mojo's copycat cell was convincing. She doubted any of the dimwitted construction workers would notice a difference during installation. Still, her dislike for the chimp's know-it-all-ness kept her from jumping to an agreement, and she did not want to appear too eager. "Like I said Mojo, I'll try to look into it and let you know soon."

"Excellent," Mojo was satisfied enough with the answer. He looked to Sedusa next, "And for you, Sedusa, my son and I would require your assistance on the next phase of this plan."

"Which is?" Sedusa asked.

"In order for Jojo, my son, to be able to fulfill his role as rescuer of the incarcerated, he will need something back that was taken from him recently by those wretched Powerpuff Girls, and that is his super abilities. Yes, it was the Puffs who took Jojo's powers from him, and we must get them back now! Those super powers can be restored easily with the help of Chemical X. However, there is one resource we lack and very much require in order to create more Chemical X for my son and it can only be found deep beneath the earth, underneath Monster Isle's Mount Ira. This is a place you are familiar with, yes?"

Sedusa smirked, "Yes, I am." She placed her hands on her hips as she looked at Mojo, "And do you remember who lives there?"

"Yes, I know precisely who," Mojo answered with a huff, "That is why we require your assistance. My son and I would need you to provide a distraction while we attempt to gather the resources we need-"

Sedusa interrupted with a laugh, "Distract Him? While you and your son go and rob his place?" The villainess shook her head, "You've gotta be kidding me."

"I assure you, I am serious-"

"There's no way!" Sedusa laughed again. "You want my honest opinion, Mojo? As someone whose known the guy for a long time, I can tell you right now that the two of you," Sedusa pointed at both Mojo and Jojo each, "Have no clue what you're doing. Your fake cage swap out is not a bad idea, but when it comes to this, you're out of your league. Salt? Candles? Sage? Really? You really think that stuff actually works-"

"This is why we seek your help in particular with this," Mojo gritted his teeth, angered by Sedusa's mocking tone, "You are the one with the longest history with the demon and know Him the best. If anyone can find a way to distract Him for a day, it would be you-"

"The fact that you even think it's possible to distract Him is what I find so funny-"

"Oooh, distract me from what?"

As the echoing, sing-song voice came into the room, so did a sudden, fast gust of wind, extinguishing all the candles in the warehouse at once. Collectively, everyone's eyes fell on the building cloud of pink smoke that had manifested near the conference table.

"Speak of the devil," Sedusa looked at Mojo and smirked.

"Shit," Jojo muttered underneath his breath and whispered next to Mojo, "What do we do?"

"Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do. He is here." Mojo gritted his teeth as the demon appeared before them, walking out from his puff of pink mist with a smile.

"What's this?" Him asked as he approached the group of villains, "A Villains' Council meeting? Why, I suppose my invitation must have gotten lost in the mail."

Mojo narrowed his eyes on the demon who wickedly smiled at him, "You received no invitation for you were not invited!"

"Not invited?" Him raised an offended claw to his chest, "But wasn't I voted president of this organization? I should think the president would be invited to all Villains' Council meetings."

Mojo growled in frustration, biting his tongue. Princess stepped forward next, "Well, most of those who 'voted' for you," the teenager made air quotes with her fingers, "Aren't even here anymore." She huffed as she placed her hands on her hips, "There's so few of us left, I say we don't need a president anymore."

"An interesting point, Princess," the demon's voice dropped low as his eyes momentarily narrowed on the girl. He smiled again as his voice rose higher once more, "Yes, since membership has changed, I suppose a re-vote may be in order, hmm? Let's have it then." Him looked between each villain. "All those in favor of my leadership and role as president of this Villains' Council raise your hands..."

As Him rose his claw, Sedusa also raised her hand. She gave an innocent shrug as Mojo shot her a dirty look. Princess stubbornly folded her arms, and turned her nose up in the air.

As Jojo stood beside Mojo, he felt a sudden tug on his right arm as an invisible force caused him to raise his scarred hand, "What the-?" the masked teenager reacted in confusion, trying to pull his own hand back down, but finding it impossible. "Mojo, I-I swear this isn't me-" he looked at Mojo.

"I know, Son," Mojo's glare was still fixed on the demon as he muttered low. "This is what Him does..."

Continuing to fight the invisible hold, Jojo looked at Princess next. He could see Him's eyes glowing red as he seemed to focus on her. However, Princess remained unmoving, her arms still crossed as she looked right back at Him, unphased.

Jojo blinked at Princess, "How are you doing that?"

"Hmph," the girl turned her nose up once more, "Nobody controls me."

"That child's stubbornness knows no bounds," Mojo commented under his breath beside Jojo.

Unable to move Princess, Him moved on anyway, "Alright then, let's see," Him pointed his claw as he counted, "One... two... three. Yes, three against two. Why, that is still a majority! I suppose that means I stay in power, yes?" Him giggled wickedly.

Finally Jojo was able to pull his hand back down as Him's hold was released.

"Now that that's settled, OK Mojo, carry on then with your plan. What was it again? Oh yes, you needed a distraction to keep me from noticing when both you and your," Him paused as he raised his claw to his mouth, stifling a small giggle, "Son," he smirked before continuing, "Sneak into my lair." He shook his head, "Tsk, tsk, tsk... Why if you needed something from me, Mojo, all you needed to do was ask. There's no need to try to go behind my back and take it. Do you really think of me as that unreasonable? Why, this is a role I can easily play in your latest little monkey scheme." Him looked from Mojo to the masked teenager and smiled deviously. "Here," he said as he tossed something next to Jojo.

Jojo caught the softball sized rock with his scarred hands. His emerald eyes blinked from behind his mask as he stared at the dark crystal and Him continued to speak.

"Why don't we avoid all that nonsense and cut to the chase. Here is what you want. Go on, and take it. I have plenty, of course."

As Mojo took the black rock from Jojo and inspected it, Him floated over to them, gliding behind the masked teenager. He patted the top of Jojo's head as he continued to sing, "Consider it a peace offering, to make up for our previous little misunderstanding-"

"You mean when you last tried to kill me-?" Jojo glared from behind his mask.

Him laughed, "Again, that was a simple miscommunication, Child. I thought you understood, but no matter!" Him grinned again, "I know by giving this to you that it will come with a power that is so irresistibly evil, I must confess, I just cannot pass up the opportunity to see it again. Plusss," the demon leaned close to Jojo's left ear as he whispered sharply, "I can see what you're plotting too, and my, my... it is such a deliciously evil plan. Again, quite irresistible. How can I not give you my blessing?"

As Jojo blinked back at Him, the demon turned again to Mojo. "So there you have it. Everything you need, yes?"

Mojo stared at the massive sample of cinnabar-x he held, still unsure of what to think of it. "I suppose, yes-"

"Good!" Him clapped his claws together. "If that is all, then meeting adjourned!" As Him slowly floated past the group, a trail of mist following, he paused briefly by Princess. "Oh, but before I go..." The demon raised one claw in the air, opening it and then snapping it shut, in a snipping motion.

As Him snipped the air, simultaneously Jojo felt a snap behind his head as the band to his mask came loose. Before the teenager could react, his disguise fell off his face. He stumbled to catch it, but it was too late.

Princess' brown eyes widened as they fell upon Joey's scarred face. The green Puff blinked back, gulping nervously as she stared with her mouth agape.

Him cackled as he spoke low to Princess, "I just thought before you agree to help them, you might want to actually see the sort you'd be working with, hmm?" Him cackled wickedly as the smoke around him continued to build and he made his exit, "Well, it's been nice seeing you all again! Until our next meeting, yes? Goodbye!"

"OK, wait a minute," Sedusa laughed a little as she looked at the green-eyed teenager's face, standing beside the still frozen in shock Princess. "Isn't that... Buttercup?"

Princess shook her head in disbelief, before she forced herself to look away. Immediately, she started for the door.

Joey quickly followed after her, "Princess, wait! Please! Let me explain-"

"Explain what?!" Princess stopped and turned around fast to face Joey. Her brown eyes were flooded with tears as they narrowed on the green Puff, "Explain how it's just one lie after another with you?! I mean I was barely getting over the whole Mojo thing, but now THIS?! YOU'RE A POWERPUFF GIRL!"

"NO I'M NOT!" Joey screamed back in both frustration and desperation.

Princess shook her head again, as she turned once more to leave. "Come on, Alfred-"

Joey sprinted quickly for the door, beating the heiress and butler to it. "Wait, OK?"

"Out of my way!" Princess yelled, the tears beginning to stream down her cheeks.

"Just listen! Please! Look, who you're thinking about right now is Buttercup! But I'm not her, OK? When you met me, I told you I was Joey, and that's who I am! So I'm not the liar! Buttercup is the fucking lie, not me! I know it might be hard for you to understand, but Buttercup's just the person I was forced to be, alright? She's the one thing I want to destroy more than anything else, because no matter what I do, no matter how hard I try to get away from everything associated with Buttercup, I can't! People look at my face, and all they see is HER! And it don't matter when I say I'm not who they think I am, 'cause people take one look at me and think they know better! 'Oh who doesn't know fucking Buttercup?' I kept my mask on around you this whole time, 'cause for once I was finally getting to know someone and relate to someone and like someone who was seeing me for me! I never had that before you! I just didn't want it to end!"

"So you just kept on going, making me out to be some fool!"

"No!" Shouting again desperately, Joey's emerald eyes glistened with tears. "I never meant to hurt you, Princess! But I knew once the mask came off, it was gonna be hard for you to not see Buttercup because we share the same hideous fucking face! But it's not Buttercup's face, it's mine! I know I keep saying this, but I don't know how else to put it: I am not her. I'm the same person I've been all these times we've spent together. That shit was real, OK? And I just thought that if I spent enough time getting to know you through the mask, then maybe, well, maybe once it came off you'd actually see... me."

Joey dropped down on both knees before the short villainess and pleaded, "Please, Princess. Please understand. Buttercup's the one I want to destroy. Me? I'm Joey. I am Joey, OK? Please see that..."

Princess stared back at the green Puff with tears streaming down her face, but said nothing. She quickly wiped at her eyes, turned up her nose and pushed past towards the door, "Come on, Alfred," she said as she walked out, leaving Joey behind on both knees.

Watching her go then, the heartbreak felt was excruciating.

"Well that was a pretty unexpected but entertaining show at the end there," Sedusa laughed as she walked out the door next, "See you boys around town!"

As the raven-haired Puff remained on the floor, Mojo came up from behind. "There, there, Son," he gave a consoling pat on the back. "You cannot let some girl reduce you to a pitiful puddle of tears. Especially that girl being Princess of all people..."

Unbenounced to Mojo, he hit the spot where Joey had been struck by Princess' bullet, causing even more pain in that moment.

"Come along now," Mojo picked the Puff up, helping him back onto his feet. "Let us return home."


The opaque black crystal sat upon the center of the table, illuminated by the dining room chandelier that hung above. Mojo and Jojo sat across from one another, each staring at the dark rock in silence. Mojo sat reclined in his seat, drumming his gloved fingertips upon the table's surface. Jojo was bent forward, slouched in his chair, his chin resting on the tabletop so that his emerald eyes were at the same level as the hunk of mineral. The two had been debating with themselves and each other for hours over the same topic.

"I can test it again," Mojo sighed deeply, rubbing the exhaustion from his eyes. "Although I doubt a sixth time will yield any different results. No, every analysis I perform gives us the same outcome. But, of course, we cannot be too careful when it comes to this. We must take great caution with this decision. Yes, perhaps I should test it again-"

"It's gonna be the same," Jojo muttered, keeping his chin on the table. "I want it."

"Son, need I remind you again of the risks associated with accepting help from that demon-"

"You told me," Jojo's emerald eyes were unblinking as he stared at the rock before him. "You've told me a million times by now."

"We can still try to find another way-"

"How?" Jojo lifted his head from the table and looked up. "Sedusa said herself that there's no distracting Him. Even if we find another way to break into his lair, what's to say whatever we take might not also be tainted or somethin'? I mean it all comes from the same place, right? And now that Princess is mad at me, there ain't no way she's gonna help us get the Professor's Powerpuff-Proof material. So we go in there completely defenseless and then what? Get killed? Probably!"

"That is not something you can predict-"

"I'm tired of being without my powers, Mojo!" the teenager slammed a scarred fist hard against the table as he shouted.

"Hey!" Mojo snapped a finger as he sat up in his seat and pointed at Jojo, "Control yourself!"

As the green Puff gritted his teeth and clenched both scarred fists, Mojo continued to lecture.

"Junior, as I've said before, this rage that takes hold of you is something you must learn to restrain. Your anger gets away from you far too quickly, and you lose yourself to your fury and wrath. Your emotions get the better of you, and that is something you must teach yourself to handle. Need I remind you of what comes with that loss of control when your powers are present? Your special ability is quite literally a deadly one. When you do regain your powers, that ability will come back. You will either master it, or perish under its colossal force. So once again: Control yourself, Junior."

Jojo exhaled deeply through his nostrils, relaxing his fists and muttering low, "Sorry..."

Mojo watched the teenager crack his scarred knuckles. The green Puff slouched in his seat and rested his chin on the table once more, his green eyes falling on the heap of cinnabar-x yet again. Mojo let out another sigh. "I leave this decision to you, Son. I do not wish to be the one who stands in the way of your potential, or the one you resent for keeping you from achieving your aspirations. I must admit... I do not yet see a clear path to finding another opportunity for this. Nor can I tell you if I ever will. This, indeed, may be our only option to restore your power. However, once again, I must remind you that it is a gift from someone who is known to not be trusted. You must be wary of it. You must be on guard of what consequences may follow. For again, Him does nothing freely that does not serve himself in some way. If he wanted you to have this, then it is for a reason."

Jojo lifted his head once more, but kept his eyes on the darkened crystal. "I want it."

Mojo exhaled deeply before he gave a single nod. "Very well then. Let us get started."


Nestled underneath her sibling's green comforter, the blue Puff awoke to the morning sun's rays that peaked through the room's darkened curtains. As she lay in bed, she realized soon that there was a light tapping sound coming from the circular window above. The blue Puff stood upon the mattress and pulled back the black curtains, and found a friend waiting just on the other side.

"Ohmigosh, Pete!" Bubbles exclaimed with a gasp as her baby blue eyes fell on the pigeon. The beaded eyed bluish gray bird with a banded black neck sat perched on the window's ledge and cooed. The crystal glass pane on the window was soundproof, and Bubbles could not hear what her tiny friend was trying to tell her. However, she had a good idea of what his morning visit may be about.

She hovered off the mattress to get a better look outside. Looking down into their home's backyard, she gasped again.

"Ohmigosh-ohmigosh-ohmigosh!" The blue Puff held up a hand, motioning for the bird to wait, "One second, Pete! I'll be right out!"

Bubbles hopped off from the bed, snatching her sibling's pillow and taking it with her. She skittered out into the hallway, and was about to zip down the stairs, when she stopped. "I should tell Blossom!" it dawned on her then. She flew to her sister's bedroom door with a flash of blue light.

As the blue Puff reached for the door's handle, it was icy cold to the touch. Opening the door, there was some resistance felt, and at first Bubbles mistook it for the door's lock. However as the door cracked open, it broke a thin layer of ice with it, and Bubbles quickly realized that the door had been frozen shut.

"Oh no, Blossom-" Bubbles quickly opened the door and immediately felt the chilly atmosphere inside sting her face. "B-B-B-Blossom?" the blue Puff shivered as she stepped inside the pink painted icebox that had become her sister's room.

Blossom sat upon her bed, wrapped in a heavy layer of blankets so thick, only her bubblegum eyes peeked out from a tiny opening. The quilts and comforters had all become stiff from the cold that radiated from the superpowered teen. The pink Puff spoke sadly, muffled from the heap of blankets, "My laptop screen c-cracked from the c-c-cold..."

"Oh, B-B-Blossom..." Bubbles frowned as she floated over to the bed, "C-C-Come on," she ripped away the frozen sheets, shattering a few in the process, and pulled her stiff limbed sister out from bed, "L-l-let's g-g-get you s-some s-s-sun..."

As the redhead was pulled along by the pigtailed Puff, she still shivered as they flew, "B-B-Bubbles, I don't f-feel like g-going outside right n-now... C-C-Can't you j-j-just p-put me by the f-f-f-f-fireplace f-for a b-bit...?"

"We're just going to the backyard. I wanna show you something, OK?"

"W-W-Why d-do you ha-have B-B-B-Buttercup's p-pillow, B-B-Bubbles?"

"You'll see! Come on!"

As the frostbitten Puff stepped out onto the back porch with her sister, the morning sun instantly offered her icy blue skin some much needed relief. The rays of sunshine were incredibly soothing, and as Blossom took a few moments to soak in the warmth, she was too distracted at first to notice what Bubbles had brought her out there to see. Blossom held her eyes closed as her body slowly defrosted underneath the sun, as she listened to the sounds of chirping birds. When the fluttery, peaceful tweets were suddenly followed by a collection of howls, squeaks, chittering, meows and barks, Blossom opened her eyes again.

"One at a time guys! One at a time!" Bubbles stood in front of a zoo of animals that had gathered in the Utonium's backyard.

"Oh... my... God..." Blossom blinked in disbelief at the giant gathering of wild animals. "Bubbles," she stepped off the porch and stood beside her sister, "What's going on?"

"Hold on," she said to Blossom, before returning her attention to the pigeon that fluttered in front of her. She cooed softly to the animal and he cooed back. A striped tabby cat stepped forward next and spoke up with a meow and more meows followed from other cats after. Bubbles mewed and meowed in return, before turning her attention to a giant swarm of rats who all squeaked together.

Blossom watched her sister chatter back and forth with the animals for several minutes. Of course, she could not understand anything that was being said, but from how Bubbles was acting, she could tell she was getting increasingly excited about something.

"Ohmigosh-ohmigosh-ohmigosh!" Bubbles bounced as she faced Blossom again. "It worked! They found us some clues!"

"What?" Blossom blinked back.

"OK so the other day when I was lying in Buttercup's bed I got this idea! Like I was thinking about how you've been so sad that all the police searches and surveillance still wasn't finding nothing about Buttercup and how it sucks that we can't just ask people around town if they've seen her 'cause then they'll know she was missing and then they might turn everything into another bad stupid story or some villain might find out! Anyways I was cuddling with Buttercup's pillow and I said 'Ohmigosh I can still smell her' you know and that was nice but then I thought 'Ohmigosh I can still smell her' you know and if I can still smell her on her pillow then those with even better noses and senses can too and so I went and talked to all of my animal friends around town and had them sniff Buttercup's pillow and told them, 'Hey guys look out for this and if you find anything come tell me' and then I woke up this morning and SEE?!" Bubbles gestured toward the crowd of animals behind her excitedly. "They all came to tell me that they found traces of Buttercup! All of them! Blossom! She's still out there! She's still walking around town! Buttercup's out there! We just have to find her!"

Blossom stared back at Bubbles with her mouth agape for several moments before a huge grin swept her face, "Oh my God, Bubbles! YOU'RE A GENIUS!"

The pink Puff threw her arms around the blue Puff and swung her around as she hugged her. Both sisters giggled with pure joy together as they celebrated the good news.

"Can they show us where they picked up on her scent?" Blossom asked.

Bubbles knelt down towards the pigeon who rested at her feet. She cooed and he cooed back in return. She hopped back up with a happy bounce, "Yes! Pete says we can follow them!"

Blossom squeezed her sister again, "Bubs, you're amazing! Come on, let's get dressed quickly so we can go!"


Mojo watched as the fast beam of green light zipped excitedly about back and forth at the top of the water tower. The refinement process to make the Chemical X for Junior had taken all night, so the teenager had only just regained his super abilities that morning. Joy was a rare emotion for the green Puff, but from the moment Mojo roused him from his slumber and showed him the completed vial of Chemical X, Jojo had yet to stop smiling. Mojo couldn't help but smirk as he listened to the child laugh happily as he flew about the tower's workspace.

"So how are you feeling, Junior?" Mojo called out from below.

"I FEEL AMAZING!" Jojo shouted back, still zooming about as a fast beam of light, "I FEEL LIKE MYSELF AGAIN!" The green Puff zipped back down to the ground and appeared before Mojo in a fast flash. He threw his scarred arms around the short simian, lifting him up and off from the floor as he hugged him tightly, "Thank you, Mojo! Thank you so much!"

"Junior," Mojo strained to speak underneath the crushing weight of the superpowered teen's embrace, "You should recall that now that your powers have returned, so has your super strength-"

"Oops," Jojo released the chimp and sat him back on his feet, "Sorry, Mojo."

Mojo straightened out the wrinkles in his uniform, as he spoke, "Well, today is Saturday. Now that you have your powers, we should devote the day to training," Mojo gave a firm nod. "It would be best to get a start on learning to handle your special power, Son. A power so mighty will take time to master, and master it you must! Only through learning to control your unique capability will you be able to achieve and maintain a stable power balance. We must work today to find and devise a technique and routine for you so that you may stay on top of your power and learn to properly wield it."

"Sounds good!" Jojo answered with a grin. "I'm ready!"

"Your unique ability is one that affects organic life, and so I think a trip to the forest may be in order-"

As Mojo spoke an alarm began to buzz from the tower's security system. He and Junior turned around and looked towards the main workstation control board.

"What's that?" Jojo asked.

"An alert signifying something at the bottom of the tower," Mojo explained as he walked over to his workstation. "Probably just a squirrel," he said as he hit a few buttons on the control board. The monitor displaying the security camera's live feed turned on as Mojo and Jojo gathered around it. "It is a squirrel... and... a dog... and several cats... birds... a racoon and... your sisters?!" Mojo blinked at the monitor as he watched the animals scurry about the base of the tower, as the Powerpuffs poked through bushes and looked all around.

"Oh shit," Jojo cursed low as his eyes fell upon the camera feed.

"How did they locate us? What led them to our lair? Why are they traveling with so many animals?"

Jojo shook his head as he watched the blue Puff lift the squirrel to her ear and listen to its chatter. "Fucking Bubbles..."

Mojo observed as Blossom held a green pillow case out for the group of cats to sniff before they scurried off screen. "It would seem that the blue Puff has utilized her special power to enlist the help of local wildlife to locate you via scent..."

"Yeah, that's what it looks like," Jojo grumbled, "Dammit!" the teenager clenched his fist, "OK, I'll get my mask and try to lead them away from here-"

"You will do no such thing," Mojo grabbed the Puff by his arm before he could zip away. "Even with your disguise that will not keep those critters from catching your scent and then your identity will most definitely be revealed! All it would take is just for one of those furry little nuisances to recognize that you and Buttercup share the same odor, and then mask or no mask, you will be uncovered! Then the jig will be up! Game over!"

"But what if they figure out this is our lair?!"

"So far they are only searching the ground. The tower base's entrance is sealed and hidden. They will not find it for it is a secret door that is camouflaged and invisible. So long as they do not think to look up and peer inside the tank with any supervision or x-ray sight then we are safe. And why would they think to search the sky when the one they seek they believe no longer has the capability of flight?"

Mojo and Junior continued to watch the camera feed. After some time, the animals scattered off towards the street again, and the Puffs followed after. Mojo and Junior both sighed together in relief.

"Shit, that was close."

"Yes, it was. We must be even more cautious now that your sisters have this new search tactic. Thanks to this strategy they have employed, I am afraid you must stay inside this tower and not leave until we think of a way to throw these creatures from your scent..."

"Aw, what?!" Jojo complained with a groan. "I just got my powers back! I wanna get out there and practice like you said!"

"As Mojo said, until we devise a plan to put an end to your sisters' hunt for Buttercup then you must stay put or risk being found out. Hmmm... There must be some way to deter the Puffs from their search efforts..."

Jojo let out a sigh as he leaned against the control board, "I knew they wouldn't quit lookin' for me." The teenager groaned again, "Man... that plan I made for Princess and me woulda solved this, I bet."

"What plan?" Mojo's ears perked up as he asked. "You've been plotting with Morbucks?"

"Nah, it's just somethin' I came up with on my own, and I was gonna ask her to help since it kinda involves that re-opening of the Discovery Dome next week. I mean, I thought she'd get a kick out of sorta ruining that place one more time and everything, but," Jojo kicked the ground with his feet as he muttered low, "She hates me now so it ain't gonna happen."

Mojo raised an eyebrow, "Tell me more about this plan."

Jojo zipped over to a nearby workstation where he stored mostly his school work and study materials. He picked up a green colored notebook and flew back to Mojo. "Here, you can read it yourself if you want."

The simian took the paper book and sat down at his control panel with it. He picked up a pair of reading glasses and opened it to the first page and began reading. Jojo watched as he scanned the material quickly, feeling a bit nervous about sharing his first evil scheme with the seasoned, notorious villain.

"You thought of all this by yourself?" Mojo asked as he turned the page.

"Well yeah," Jojo shrugged. "But I was gonna ask Princess for help on all the technical stuff, you know? Like, I figured since her dad's the one in charge of renovations and repairs there then she's probably got a way to get some inside information on how I can make it all work."

"Hmmm," Mojo turned to the next page, "There would not be much that you would have to adjust to be able to execute this on your own. I could easily assist you with developing a simple hacking device for this..." as Mojo turned to the final page his voiced trailed off for a moment. He stared closely at the last page in silence for a minute before he shut the notebook and handed it back to Jojo.

"So..." Jojo bit his lip nervously as he took the notebook back, "Whaddya think?"

Mojo removed his glasses and wiped a small tear from his eye. "Son," he turned in his chair to face the green Puff, "I am so very proud of how truly evil you have become."

Jojo smirked, "Really? So you like it? I mean, I know it's kinda simple, but I dunno-"

"A concise plan does not equate to simplicity, nor does it imply substanderdness or inferiority. What you have here is a straight-forward, to the point, no-nonsense and direct strategy that will undoubtedly accomplish what you seek to attain. Sometimes the best way to hit and wound our enemies is not always through physical, brute force. This approach you have designed is what I would call psychological warfare, and it is often the most crippling, damaging and destructive type of violence one can commit."

Mojo rose from his chair, looking seriously into the Puff's emerald eyes as he spoke firmly.

"You absolutely must move forward with this plot on your own. Do not dismiss this brilliant idea of yours simply because Princess may want nothing to do with it or with you! Not only is it a perfectly wicked scheme, but it will most definitely be a solution to our problem concerning your sisters! Not only that, but the message you seek to send is one that must be sent! For you and yourself alone, you must do this!"

"You really think I can pull it off though?"

Mojo reached out and placed a hand on Jojo's arm and smirked. "Son, only you can."


There was no greater pain than that of a broken heart. This was something Alfred knew from experience, and he knew what ailed Princess as of late was exactly that. He was beside her that night, of course- the night she learned the shocking truth about her masked friend, Joey. When the mask came off, Alfred had no idea how the heiress might react at first. For Princess, anger was the typical response when receiving upsetting news. However, the moment he turned to see her tearful expression, he knew it wasn't rage she felt, but hurt. The hurt was deep that night, and he knew that it would take a long time for her to heal from this. So that mid November morning when he discovered the bouquet of yellow sunflowers left outside the door to the manor with an enveloped note, he knew this could either help heal the girl's heart or break it even further.

Alfred carried the delivery to Princess's bedroom suite with a tray of morning breakfast. He paused outside the shut double wide doors and knocked.

"Come in," Princess answered from the other side. She was up already on her own, and this was a good sign.

Alfred stepped into the room, "Good morning, Miss."

"Good morning, Alfred," Princess answered, sitting at her vanity set as she fixed her hair for the day. Her voice was the same ho-hum, spiritless tone it had been as of late.

"I have your breakfast, Princess," Alfred announced.

"Put it down anywhere, Alfred. Thank you." Princess sighed as she patted her finished poof buns.

"There was also a delivery for you this morning," Alfred carried the bundle of yellow flowers and sealed envelope to her.

As Princess noticed what Alfred held through the reflection in her mirror, she turned in her seat. "What is that?"

"Sunflowers, Miss," Alfred handed her the bouquet, "And a letter it seems," he handed her the envelope next. "They were waiting on the doorstep this morning."

Princess blinked at the sunflowers and letter, unsure of what to do with either of them. She looked at Alfred, "Who are they from?"

"I'm not sure, Princess," Alfred answered with a weak smile. Of course he had a pretty good idea, but he did not want to upset the girl or get her hopes up if he were wrong. "Perhaps... you should open the letter and find out?"

Princess sat the bouquet down upon her vanity set and gripped the envelope with both hands. She slid a finger underneath its seal, but stopped. She looked up again at Alfred. "Alfred... I... I don't know if I can read this..."

Alfred nodded, seeing that same hurt returning in her brown eyes that glistened softly. "Would you like me to, Miss?"

Princess gave a small nod as she handed the envelope back to Alfred. He took it and removed the single page letter. He paused for a moment, before he began to read aloud to Princess:

"Princess... I hope you like the flowers. I wasn't sure what kind I should get you, but they're yellow and I noticed you always wear a lot of yellow, so I always assumed it must be your favorite color. I guess I never got a chance to ask you what your favorite color is, or what kind of flowers you prefer. If we had met at some other point in life, maybe I wouldn't have been so distracted by everything else going on to forget to ask you about these things. Sorry about that I guess. But I am really thankful to have met you when I did, Princess. I don't think I would be who I am today if I never had.

Anyways, I know you're probably still upset with me, but I just wanted you to know that I still think about you every day, and I hope you are doing OK. Now that I have my powers back, today I will be carrying out the plan I mentioned to you before- the one inspired by you. While I wish you could be a part of it and be there with me, I understand that can't happen because you probably still see me as someone you can't trust anymore. Still, I really do want you to be there just to see the show I have planned for yourself, because I think out of everyone out there, you're the one who will appreciate it the most. If you can find enough forgiveness to attend today, I hope you do. And sorry, I would have gotten you tickets to go along with this letter, but they're like crazy expensive and I don't have the kind of cash you do- ha ha. But I figured being a Morbucks and all, you shouldn't have a hard time getting a front row seat if you really wanted it.

Anyways, it's happening tonight at the Discovery Dome's Grand Re-Opening. I know you hate that place as much as me, so it probably seems weird for me to ask you to come to that thing, but if my plan works out nothing is going to be able to repair the damage I do to that place today. Hopefully, they'll shut those museum doors forever and for good after this. The show starts at 6. I hope to see you there. If not, it's OK. I will still be thinking of you while I'm there.

Thanks for the inspiration. ...Joey."

Alfred lowered the page and looked at Princess. She sat at her vanity mirror, staring at her reflection for a long time with a far away gaze in her glistening brown eyes. She reached for her makeup brush and blush upon the tabletop and began to paint her cheeks lightly. She looked at the bouquet of sunflowers that sat before her and finally spoke, "Can you get a vase for those, Alfred?"

"Right away, Miss."


The Discovery Dome's Grand Re-Opening was an event that had been planned by the city of Townsville ever since reconstruction began. With much of the museum burnt down and destroyed, the Discovery Dome had been forced to close until the damage could be repaired. The timing for the city could not have been worse, as far as financial losses went. Following the break out of every infamous villain in Townsville, the Powerpuff Girls had never been more popular in the public's eye. The Discovery Dome being a Powerpuff attraction in itself could have sold many tickets that summer. Townsville hoped that the Grand Re-Opening event would make up for this loss. Tickets to the premiere went for hundreds of dollars a piece. Of course, when the Powerpuff Girls agreed to be a part of the event- even before the tragedy they faced in their private lives with Buttercup's disappearance- they had requested that the re-opening be not as big as the museum's prior premiere. "No more than a few hundred people," had been the word of the mayor. Somehow somebody missed the memo.

As the Utonium family station wagon pulled into the parking lot of the Discovery Dome, its passengers were shocked by the sea of people that waited outside the doors of the museum. There had to be thousands of people camped along the sidewalks waiting in line for the premiere to begin, too.

Blossom's bubblegum eyes widened from where she sat in the passenger seat of the car, "I thought this was going to be a small, exclusive event..."

The Professor frowned from behind the wheel, "The mayor did mention an overflow viewing in the parking lot for those who could not get tickets, but," he put the vehicle in park as they arrived at their destination, "I wasn't anticipating quite this big of a crowd either..." The scientist looked from Blossom to Bubbles. Both girls had their eyes fixed on the thousands of fans waiting, and each wore a slight frown. "Girls," he turned in his seat to face them each, "We don't have to do this tonight if neither of you are feeling up to it-"

"But look at all these people waiting for us," Blossom spoke, her eyes still gazing out the passenger window.

Bubbles was in the backseat, looking out the rear window, "They all look so happy to be here..."

Blossom shook her head, "If we back out now, they'll all be so disappointed..."

Bubbles turned back around in her seat and looked at the Professor, "I'm just sad that Buttercup's not here," she frowned. "I wish she could see all these people who love us. I'm sure a lot of those fans are gonna be sad to see she's not here tonight."

"Are you kidding me? She'd hate this," Blossom thought to herself as she still held her gaze on the people. She sighed before she spoke aloud, "I wish we had just cancelled earlier, but when the mayor said they'd have to refund a million dollars worth of tickets..." her voice trailed off as she shook her head. The redhead took a breath before turning in her seat to look at the Professor, "It's too late to cancel now."

The Professor frowned at Blossom, sensing her uneasiness, "It isn't too late. The mayor knows what our family is going through right now. She would understand. The only reason why I agreed to still be a part of this with you two was because I had hoped a celebration might bring some much needed cheer to our lives for one night. But now that we're here, if you feel differently Blossom," he reached for his daughter and placed a hand on her shoulder, "It's perfectly fine to say that you can't do this."

"I can do this," Blossom answered quickly. "But yeah, now that we are here, I just... don't really want to." She sighed deeply, "I just know when we're up on that stage all these people are going to be wondering and asking 'Where's Buttercup?' Even though fans are used to not seeing her at a lot of things, this is such a huge event for her to miss- everyone's going to be talking and speculating and conspiracizing- ugh," she frowned, "I'm just... not looking forward to all of that. That's all." She turned in her seat to look at Bubbles, "Are you OK, Bubs?"

"I'm OK, Blossom," Bubbles returned with a squeak, "But if you don't feel good then I'll do whatever you wanna do." The blonde showed her sister a small smile, "But maybe wherever Buttercup's at she'll get to see the show on TV and she'll see all the people and remember how much she's loved and come back home."

Blossom returned a weak smile. How she wished she shared even a fraction of her sister's optimism. Bubbles had truly been her lifeline throughout this entire ordeal and without her, Blossom would have lost all hope long ago. But even after all this time the blue Puff hadn't given up and always encouraged Blossom to stay positive. Even when all her animal friends stopped finding traces of the green Puff around town over this last week, somehow Bubbles still believed she was out there. Still, it had been nearly three months since Buttercup ran away from home. As the pink Puff thought again about her missing sibling, a wave of emotions came over her and she quickly wiped away a tear, "I just miss her so much..."

"Me too, Blossom," Bubbles squeaked, reaching out and taking her sister's hand, "She'll be back though. She has to come back. Just like the last time she ran away, we'll find her. Just remember: You have to believe."

Blossom squeezed her sister's hand, and kept a weak smile, but said nothing.

"The mayor said she and the curator made the announcement earlier that Buttercup would not be in attendance, so the fans already know Blossom," the Professor tried to encourage her next, "If anyone asks, she came down with the flu this morning. But you girls will not have to meet any fans tonight if you don't want to, so you'll be in no position to answer any questions. It will be just a quick pose for pictures on stage while the mayor gives a small speech. We can go straight home right after if you want."

"Right," Blossom took another breath before she gave a nod, "Well, we're here already so," Blossom unbuckled her seatbelt with a sigh, "Let's just get this over with."


Jojo had arrived at the Discovery Dome early that day before anyone else so that his presence would not be noticed. He waited beneath the museum in a place where he knew no one else would be looking that day, and that was the observatory's basement which sat above a lake of red, hot magma.

The night's celebrations were taking place upstairs within the museum itself, and all the attention would be on the mainstage that had been set up in the lobby. There was supposed to be an outdoor screening in the museum parking lot as well, but no matter what, everyone's eyes would be on that stage. As the day went on, he could hear the crowd growing bigger outside as they waited for the premiere to begin.

The sweltering hot room was tinted red from the fiery pool of lava beneath its platform. It was an uncomfortable heat to sit in for hours, but it was something the superpowered teenager could handle. He sat reclined against a back wall, hidden between a row of steadily beeping energy panels and switchboards. Jojo ran the evening's plan over and over again in his head. As the sounds of the people above grew louder, he knew the time was getting close.

A roar of collective cheers started and soon he could hear the mayor's voice echoing loudly over the PA system above. The show was starting.

A devious grin swept Jojo's face as he sat up straight and checked his wrist watch for the time. 6 PM.

"Alright," the green Puff rose to both feet, picking up a small handheld video camera that had been resting at his side, "Time to give the people what they want."


Professor Utonium, Blossom and Bubbles waited together behind the stage as the main event for the evening began. Mayor Bellum stood upon the stage delivering her speech to the massive crowd in attendance from behind a podium. The backdrop behind her was a giant screen which reflected what was happening on stage. This allowed every member of the audience to get a clear view for themselves, no matter how far back they sat. The live view that was projected was the same footage being displayed on the overflow screen outside the museum, as well as what was being broadcasted on live television for viewers at home.

"Allow me to introduce to you all, the scientist responsible for the greatest little gifts our city has ever been blessed with- Professor Utonium!"

Hearing his cue, the Professor began to climb the steps to the stage. Bubbles shot in front him with a fast flash of light, "Hold on, Professor! Your bowtie!" she fixed the crooked bow upon the Professor's suit and gave him a smile, "There!"

"Thank you, Bubbles," the Professor returned a smile and gave her a quick hug. He looked back over his shoulder and smiled next at Blossom, "I'll see you girls on stage."

As the applause rang out for the Professor, Bubbles looked back at Blossom. The pink Puff still stood at the bottom of the steps, her bubblegum eyes focused on her nervously shuffling feet. The blue Puff came down the stairs and took her by the hand, leading her up a few steps, before stepping behind her. "Remember, Blossom," she said, "You're on first."

Blossom could see beyond the stage now the massive audience waiting for her. She bit her lip nervously, "Right..." She glanced behind her at Bubbles who wore an encouraging smile.

"We got this, Blossom," Bubbles gave her sister a pat on the shoulder. "Everyone out there loves us and they love you! So don't worry, OK? They're all here for us!"

The blue Puff's smile was comforting enough to nudge Blossom into a smile of her own, "Right."

"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for... the Powerpuff Girls! It is an honor to proudly introduce first... the commander and leader of the Powerpuff Girls- Blossom!"

Hearing her cue, Blossom took a deep breath and put on her brave face. She stepped out and walked to her marker upon the stage. Placing her hands upon her hips and lifting her chin, she faced the audience, bearing the biggest smile she could muster. The crowd went wild.

The Professor waited a minute to give Blossom her moment as the people cheered her on. He then continued enthusiastically, "And of course, tonight with us we also have... the joy and the laughter of the Powerpuff Girls herself- Bubbles!"

As the blue Powerpuff came out onto the stage, once again the audience roared with applause and cheers. Bubbles skipped along the stage to her marker and gave the people a girlish smile and a fast wave as she took her place beside Blossom.

Once again, the Professor paused so that Bubbles could receive her praise. As he shuffled the index cards which contained his short speech for the night, he was about to begin speaking again when suddenly a voice spoke over him.

"Don't forget about me..."

Blossom, Bubbles and the Professor all turned their heads at once to the big screen behind them, their eyes widening with disbelief. There she was- Buttercup.

"...The toughest fighter," the green Puff on screen completed with a grin.

The Utoniums all stared at the screen with their jaws agape, unsure of what was happening. It was definitely the missing Puff, but the camera angle was tight, and all they could see was Buttercup's face- the V-shaped scar taking up most of the frame. It was impossible to tell where the hero was.

"Sorry I couldn't make it on stage tonight," the green Puff continued. "Everyone's probably heard by now that, well, I haven't been feeling too good..."

"Ohmigosh, Buttercup," Bubbles squeaked softly to Blossom, "Where is she? What's she doing?"

"I don't know," Blossom answered, her bubblegum eyes wide as she stared on with baited breath.

"I can't see what's going on from my end," the green Puff continued peering closely into the lens of the camera, "But I'm sure it's a big party, and even though parties aren't usually my thing, I didn't want to miss this. Anyways, if my sisters are looking shocked right now that's 'cause they are. Surprise, guys! Yeah, it's me."

Bubbles and Blossom exchanged glances before looking back to the screen, unsure of what else they could do.

"They're so surprised, you see, 'cause I actually ran away from home about three months ago. I'm sure this is the last place they'd thought I'd turn up, ha!" The green Puff laughed with a snort before continuing, "You see, I ran away after my family... well, Professor, you're the science expert, why don't you tell the people about your last little experiment ya did on me, huh?"

The Professor also watched the screen in a frozen state. He blinked back, wondering just what this was about.

"Aw, he's probably not sayin' nothin," the green Puff said after a pause, "He's not so quick to brag about all his experiments, ya see? Especially when it comes to me. So, I'll just tell ya about it myself." The raven-haired teen looked directly into the camera with an intense stare, "He took away my powers with Antidote X. Blossom and Bubbles were there. Yep. They're the ones who had to hold me down so he could do it..."

Professor Utonium backed away from the podium and quickly shuffled to the side of the stage where Mayor Bellum and the museum curator stood. "Can't we put an end to this? Isn't there a way to cut the stream-"

"No, Professor!" Blossom overheard and interjected. "We have to watch to try and figure out where she's broadcasting from!"

"As shocking as that might seem to a lot of you, that wasn't the first time, you know?" the green Puff continued on screen, "Not the first time they took my powers from me is what I mean. Nah, the first time, well..." the camera shook a bit as the teenager turned to the side, showing off the V-shaped scar, "That's when I got this." There was more rustling and shaking as the green Puff seemed to set the camera down, pulling the angle back a little so that the skinny teen's full body was in frame, standing before the camera. The tomboy pulled off the long sleeved black jacket, revealing next the dark marks along both forearms and hands, "And of course these." A smirk, "Yeah, I bet you all never saw these ones before huh? They made me hide them. Just like they made me hide everything that really happened to me. 'Course... even I wasn't allowed to know certain stuff. Stuff about myself- ain't that crazy? Like how when I got these," the Puff paused to show off both scarred arms, keeping close to the camera. "This happened." The teen reached for something in a back pocket and pulled it out- a sheet of paper with a single image printed upon it. The green Puff held it up to the camera for all to see.

A loud collective gasp shook the room as everyone's eyes fell on the same photo. It was the documented photograph taken after the green Puff's accident on Monster Isle. The image was of the then thirteen-year-old's face, taken from the shoulders up- still covered in blood with the burn wounds fresh and entire face swollen, lying upon a medical bed with both eyes shut. Even upon a paper print out, it was easy to see the faint, deathly bluish grey hue to the child's skin.

Blossom and Bubbles gasped in shock along with the audience, never having seen this picture of their sibling before. Blossom looked at the Professor with wide, scared eyes, "Professor-?"

Before he could answer, the green Puff continued on screen. "Look at that," the tomboy pulled back the photo a little to tap at something typed underneath it with a scarred finger, "Time of death: 5:54 PM." The teenager laughed again, "Isn't that crazy?! I FUCKING DIED- oops, sorry, family event- I FREAKING DIED!"

The laughter that erupted from the Puff was just as unsettling as the photograph itself. Professor Utonium looked at Blossom and Bubbles and shook his head as he quickly tried to explain, "Girls, I was only trying to protect you all. I knew if this got out, it would only make life harder for you. She was only gone for a few minutes- it happens in medicine- but I didn't want to add to your distress at the time-"

"Yeah, so there ya have it. I died," the green Puff smirked into the lens again. "But the Professor's a great scientist, right? Like the best in the world, right? I mean this whole museum is all about his inventions and experiments so you all know this! So 'course he had no problem bringin' me back from the dead, and here I am, I guess!" A pause. "Back from the dead? Huh. Sounds like a horror plot, right? Somethin' outta some monster movie? So I guess all the rumors that have been floatin' around town are true. Turns out... I AM A MONSTER!"

The green Puff fell into a fit of laughter once more. It lasted only a few seconds this time as the teenager stopped suddenly with a small gasp. "But wait! If I'm supposed to be a Powerpuff Girl then that means... well, it's my job to protect this city from monsters, right? I mean, I took an oath at five years old and devoted my whole life to it and everything! OK, OK... I think I know how to solve this! And I know it's been a while since anyone's got to see Buttercup save the day, so this should be good! Let's go!"

Bubbles and Blossom watched intently as their sibling moved the camera once more. This time, it was set on the ground, and finally as the green Puff backed away, they could make out a red-tinted room and grated steel floor. Still, they weren't immediately sure of where the location was.

The tomboy backed away and ran about the room with both exposed, scarred arms extended forward, making whooshing noises, and looking just like a child pretending to fly in some imaginary game. The teen "flew" around for a minute before stopping abruptly in the distance. Turning to face an invisible foe, the green Puff shouted at nothing, pointing with a scarred finger, "Stop right there, Evil Monster!"

The Puff turned around and faced the opposite direction, gasping loudly, "Oh no! It's Buttercup of the Powerpuff Girls!"

Again, the teen turned back, pointing a scarred finger once more, "That's right, Evil Monster! It is I, Buttercup, the toughest fighter! And I'm here to kick your butt and save the day!"

Another turn, "Grr! Not without a fight you won't!"

As the teenager wrestled with nothing and threw invisible punches and kicks at the air, the audience watching found the behavior so bizarre they could not help but laugh, believing it to be a joke. As the crowd started to collectively chuckle at the child's strange antics, Blossom and Bubbles stood horrified by the response.

"Why are they laughing?" Bubbles squeaked, "She's acting crazy... can't they see she needs help?"

Blossom shook her head, trying her best to remain focused on the screen so that she could try and decipher just where Buttercup was. The room looked so familiar, but she just couldn't quite place it. As her sibling rolled about the steel grated floor, fending off an imaginary attacker, the camera was kicked so that it slid across the ground and provided a slightly different angle. There was an edge visible to the steel grated floor the green Puff stood upon, and Blossom could now see that it was a platform of some kind that sat above a glowing body of liquid. However the reddish light was so bright, it was difficult to see what exactly lay beneath.

The green Puff stood upon the ledge of the platform, with both scarred arms wavering on either side for balance, "Oh no! I'm cornered!"

"Ha-ha! That's right, Evil Monster!" the Puff stepped back again and faced the edge, "I got you now! There's nowhere to run! This is it!"

As the green Puff turned back around and balanced along the ledge once more, Blossom let out a loud gasp as it came to her then. "OH MY GOD! SHE'S HERE-!"

But the realization came too late.

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE, BUTTERCUP!" the green Puff shouted before diving into the pool of molten lava below.

"NO!" Blossom screamed before taking off in a fast flash of pink light.

Seeing her sister take off, Bubbles followed quickly after her. The two puffs zipped fast across the museum lobby, bursting through a locked security door, down a long flight of stairs and arrived at the observatory's basement energy room. Their eyes fell first on their sibling's fallen black jacket that lay upon the ground and the camera that sat beside it.

Blossom flew fast to the platform's edge wailing at the top of her lungs as she looked down at the lake of magma, "BUTTERCUP!" She collapsed onto her knees, her entire body shaking as she continued to cry and scream out in agony, "BUTTERCUP! NO! BUTTERCUP, WHY?! WHY?! BUTTERCUP! NO PLEASE GOD WHY?! BUTTERCUP! OH MY GOD, BUTTERCUP! NO! NO! WHY?!"

Bubbles knelt down and picked up her sibling's jacket. It took a moment for her mind to wrap fully around the situation. She approached the ledge next and as she stood beside her weeping sister, slowly, it came to her. She next fell onto her knees as she started to sob loudly. "BUTTERCUP!" She buried her face in the black hoodie and cried.

Blossom wrapped her arms around Bubbles and held her as they knelt over the ledge together, painfully mourning the loss of Buttercup. As the two sisters sobbed uncontrollably, back at the mainstage, everyone was still watching.

"Please," the Professor turned towards the mayor and curator with tears streaming down his face, "Cut the feed now."

The screen finally went black, and Professor Utonium quickly fled from the stage and pushed past everyone in his way to get to his daughters as fast as he could.


Once the green Puff had plunged into the lava pit, the great escape came next. The superpowered teenager took off with supersonic speed, swimming deeper and deeper until they burrowed down next into the volcanic rock beneath. Clawing and scraping through the earth's crust, the green Puff tore through as a hyper beam of green light for miles. Eventually reaching an underground pipe that had been previously marked, the Puff began to dig upwards towards the surface once more.

Emerging from the ground, the raven-haired teenager's head popped up covered in a layer of muck, crust and dirt so thick only their emerald eyes were distinguishable as they fell upon the tattered black backpack that was placed earlier, confirming that the Puff had in fact ended up in the right place. Looking up, the water tower loomed above and the teenager grinned. "I made it."

The red hot lava had of course melted everything, and so the teenager quickly zipped over to the backpack to retrieve the clothing inside. There was a slight pause as the realization came that this wasn't what the Puff had packed earlier. Still, being outdoors only with mud and dirt as coverage was enough to keep from asking questions. Quickly, the teen got dressed.


Mojo sat within the lower living area of the tower's lair watching the news unfold. He heard a ding sounding from down the hallway, and he knew then that meant that the Puff's escape route had worked.

"Well, the news has just reported it, and so it is official," Mojo spoke as he rose from his seat and started down the hall and towards the tower elevator, "Buttercup is dead. That would mean that your first real endeavor in villainy was a success. Congratulations, Son."

"Thanks, Dad," the voice came from inside the elevator as the doors slid open. "Thanks for the new gear too," Jojo stepped out, wearing the attire the chimp had sewn personally for him. "How do I look?"

Mojo got his first look at the Puff. He chuckled at first at the sight of Jojo's dirt encrusted smile. Aside from the mud and grime, the teenager fit the garment perfectly. A dark green, short sleeved uniform top adorned with a thick black waist belt that featured a triangular shaped belt buckle- the emblem the same forest green as the rest of the outfit. Black slacks, and black boots, with a black cape to match.

Mojo reached behind his own purple cape to retrieve Jojo's green faced mask and handed it to him. Watching the Puff complete the outfit with his new face, Mojo's lips curled into a devious, wicked smile.

"You look like a villain."

End Part II


Author's Note:

And so we've FINALLY reached the end of Part II! YAY!

At least I hope "YAY" haha. I truly hope you guys enjoyed the ride of the finale. I had a blast writing it, although some bits were a bit of a headache to work out at times lol. PLEASE whether you loved it or hated it, I would so appreciate it if you took the time to leave a review or comment! I guess like I asked in Part I's finale, if you're not sure what to say then just let me know what part of Part II was your favorite? Any feedback would be OH SO LOVELY at this point in the story. THANKS IN ADVANCE! :D

OK. We still have Part III to go, so more insanity to come, haha. We'll pick up the story again after another time skip. This one's not as long as the last one that was between chapter 6 and 7. It will be about a year from where we ended here. Currently, my story outline has Part III mapped out to be 8 chapters, but who knows what it may turn out to be once I get to writing it. Part I was originally only 5 chapters and ended up being 6. Part II was planned out to be 10 chapters and quickly became 12. SO. We'll see I guess.

I'm gonna be taking another break before sitting down to get started on our final portion of this epic. The holidays are here of course, and then in January it's my 5 YEAR WEDDING ANNIVERSARY OHMIGOSH~ with my lovely wife. We gonna celebrate and take a trip and do some fun stuff so I'm not gonna get back to this story until the end of January. I'll be shooting to have something done in February, I hope. But you know, I can never predict how these things work out. If you'd like to check up on the progress and when to expect our next update, I'm always posting on tumblr and instagram so you can always check those out for news.

Seriously though, I want to thank you all once again for all the gracious support I've gotten for this fic! I know I've said it before, but when I first began this rewrite, I had no idea that it would appeal to so many. I was just looking for a way to improve on my writing, improve this story and hopefully pull myself out of this HUGE creative block I had been experiencing for YEARS. More than a couple years into this -now over 350k words OHMIGOSH WHAT- and I can definitely say that I am feeling much more confident in my abilities and potential as a writer thanks to this story and very much thanks to all of you and the wonderful encouragement I've received. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm truly just so happy to be sharing this insane journey with you guys~ and I REALLY hope you all like what's coming. :)

LOVE YOU ALL. HAPPY HOLIDAYS! AND THANKS AGAIN SO MUCH FOR READING!

- Bobby